


no fear, no regret

by woodswanderer



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-16
Updated: 2016-12-16
Packaged: 2018-09-08 21:18:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8862487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/woodswanderer/pseuds/woodswanderer
Summary: Okay, okay, this is fine. Newt can handle this. He's worked with all kinds of dangerous creatures, handled dragons in the war, survived years of depression alone, proposing to the love of his life couldn't be that hard. Could it?Damn that Niffler.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [it's a little bit funny (this feeling inside)](https://archiveofourown.org/works/8717809) by [weatheredlaw](https://archiveofourown.org/users/weatheredlaw/pseuds/weatheredlaw). 



> So I made a tumblr post about Newt going to propose and not finding the ring because his niffler stole it, and some people liked it! I doubt I was the first person to come up with this idea, and I've seen several posts, a few fics, and some art related to it, but this is mine. Props to weatheredlaw for being inspirational and writing this fic first, it prompted me to write mine. So go read hers. 
> 
> Yes, the title is a reference to Les Mis. I can't get Eddie Redmayne's stupid beautiful voice out of my head or off my ipod. Hit me up here or on tumblr if you want to scream about Newt belting out Les Mis for any reason, or about anything else.

Newt checked his pocket for the hundredth time. Yes, the ring was there. Okay, he could do this. No problem. This was fine. Queenie was sure she’d say yes, and Newt was pretty sure she was right, after all, women don't just sail halfway across the world to come visit for weeks on end just because they thought of you as such a good friend. 

Tina had been staying with him and all his creatures at the house in Devon he had purchased with the proceeds from his book, a home base for him and his creatures. It wasn't so much a house as three houses built on top of each other, and the muggles who sold it to him swore it was haunted, but the ghoul in the attic was quite harmless and and all the room just meant more space for his creatures.

Newt had been to visit Tina in New York several times, “on business,” and she had visited him once in England when she came to collaborate with MoM aurors on a project. Shortly after, they dispensed with the need for flimsy business excuses and Tina accompanied him on a trip to Africa in search of rare creatures. Newt looked back on it at one of the happiest times of his life, barring the brief stint where they had to hide up in a tree from ostriches. Not magical ostriches mind, just normal, muggle ostriches. Newt was not a fan.

The following spring, shortly after Queenie and Jacob’s wedding, Tina decided to take an extended holiday to England, not wanting to stay in New York by herself while her sister was on her honeymoon. With Queenie moving out of their apartment, Tina was considering moving to England permanently. Newt was more than happy to have her with him. 

Newt looked at the clock and felt his pocket again. Okay, okay, this is fine. Newt can handle this. He's worked with all kinds of dangerous creatures, handled dragons in the war, survived years of depression alone, proposing to the love of his life couldn't be that hard. Could it?

Anyway he didn't have to propose this second. He had the ring, so he could propose when the moment struck him. Right, right. Everything was fine.

———-———————————

Everything was not fine. Where did it go?! After a lovely dinner, Newt and Tina had settled down on the couch in front of the fire and just talked for hours. Finally, Newt had reached into his pocket and… nothing. He had stumbled through his good-nights and quickly retraced his steps around the house and workshop. He checked his study, the workrooms, the nurseries on the upper floors, and was about to go outside to check the paddocks when Tina called his name.

“Hey, look who I found!” Tina cradled the niffler in her arms. Unlike Newt, the niffler loved Tina, and would always go to her willingly. Newt promptly panicked, clearly seeing what had happened and what was about to happen, and started to reach out for the creature.

Tina just hefted the niffler up in her arms and started tickling her pouch. And of course, out came the ring.

“Oh Newt, what is this? Where did she get a ring?” Tina held up the small gold ring in front of her eyes. “It's beautiful! Did someone leave it here, or did she get out?” Tina looked at Newt, who was bright red and attempting to sink through the floor.

“Umm-uh,” he stammered, scrubbing a hand through his hair. “No, it’s um. It's not uh...I bought...the ring to.. propose … to .. you.” He rubbed hands down face, looking at the floor.

Tina froze, inhaling, feeling out of breath. “Oh!”

Newt stubbornly refused to make eye contact. He eyed the niffler, who was staring at him contentedly from Tina’s arms. “I should make you into a hat,” he said as he sat down on the stairs. The niffler climbed into his lap and curled up.

Tina felt like she was glowing. She moved to sit next to newt on the stairs, facing him. “Well?”

Newt looked up at her. “What?” He asked.

“Are you going to ask?” 

Newt looked at the woman he loved. He reached down to the niffler who had taken back the small gold ring and fetched it out of the small pouch on her belly. 

It took him several times to start. He had gone through his proposal a hundred times but he couldn't remember any of it. 

“I'm not… I'm not good at communicating. But you understand me completely. You've always understood me, from almost the moment we met. And you want to understand me. You like the person I am, when so many others have looked straight past me, or through me, and not even cared.

“I know you hate it when I make comparisons to the mating habits of magical creatures so I won't, but I… sometimes I feel like I need to do more to.. to prove …--But you would never let me think I need to prove myself to you, you always make sure I know I'm enough. And I don't think you know how amazing that is to me.

“How do you ask someone to spend the rest of their life with you, even when you know they love you? All I can say is that I love you. You are the rarest, most precious person to me. Because I love you, and you love me. So, will you marry me? I promise I'll never carry you around in a suitcase.”

He had barely finished his speech when Tina threw her arms around him, sending the ring flying. The niffler sprang into action, scurrying after the ring and tucking it into her pouch happily. Newt didn't care. Tina was crying, but in between she was saying “yes, yes, yes.” And that's all that mattered to him. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her into his lap in order to hug her better. 

Tina finally pulled back and laid her head on Newt’s shoulder. Newt, who was feeling happier than he could ever remember, took her hand in his. 

Tina laughed softly at the scampering niffler, who was searching through piles of debris on the stairs. “Do you think she’ll make a good ring bearer?”

Newt thought about it for a second. “Absolutely not.”


End file.
